Little Jetties park to close early in November to make way for Mile Point construction

Helen Cooper Floyd Park, also known as Little Jetties, will close earlier than expected to make way for an engineering project that aims to calm the difficult currents at the junction of the St. Johns River and the Intracoastal Waterways.

The city of Jacksonville had leased the park from the Navy, and that lease was scheduled to run out in 2015. The Navy notified the city last week that its lease will end Nov. 30, 2014, so the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can work on the project, according to a notice of termination letter from the Naval Station Mayport.

The Mile Point project is expected to last 18 to 24 months, and about eight acres of saltwater marsh at park will be removed.

The $38 million Mile Point project would remove a chain of rocks from the area and make other alterations to calm currents in the area which often make passage difficult for large cargo ships.

Pam Roman, spokeswoman for JaxParks, said the Navy has said it plans to give the city a new contract to open the park again once the Mile Point project is complete. She said the park was set to close in winter of 2015 when fewer people use it, so the earlier closing date shouldn’t be too much of an inconvenience. The park is popular for windsurfing, jet skiing and other water activities.

The nearby Huguenot Memorial Park won’t be affected by the project, Roman said.